ROOTS: REVIVING OUR ORIGINS, TRADITIONS & SPIRIT
Modern Spirit is honored to serve as the fiscal sponsor for ROOTS Fellowship, an organization dedicated to support the preservation of Indigenous spiritual lineages by funding education, intergenerational knowledge transfer, and community-led healing opportunities, ensuring ancestral wisdom remains alive, protected, and locally governed.
Why ROOTS Exist?
Indigenous communities are currently facing a critical decline in the number of traditional Master Healers and traditional wisdom keepers as the pressures of globalization reach the heart of their territories.
❋ Globally, 1500 Indigenous languages—and the unique medicinal and spiritual knowledge encoded within them —are in critical danger of vanishing foreverWhile the Western world has grown disconnected from its spiritual roots, contributing to today’s social and health challenges, Indigenous cultures hold vital wisdom to restore balance, and if their traditions fade, we lose an irreplaceable source of healing.
ROOTS:Projects
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INGA COMMUNITY: Putumayo, Colombia
To ensure the survival of this lineage and future of their ancestral wisdom, we aim to establish a consistent, monthly rhythm of education and healing, the foundations of a “Ancestral School”:
- Traditional Wisdom Workshops: Intensive training for 40–50 students in midwifery, traditional arts, and medicinal preparation once a month.
- Communal Yagé Ceremony: Once a month spiritual gathering for the community led by Taitas from the High and Low Putumayo to foster unity, guidance and identify potential learners.
Funding Goal: $43,000 USD
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THE ARHUACO COMMUNITY: Sasaima, Colombia
By covering basic living and education costs, we help ensure that sacred knowledge, cultural identity, and community leadership are not lost to economic pressure.
- We support Mamo Lorenzo Izquierdo, an Arhuaco spiritual leader known internationally for his work in ancestral healing and ceremonies, and his family, who live modestly while serving their community.
- Becoming and serving as a Mamo requires full dedication, leaving no opportunity for conventional income. Support allows his son to complete his spiritual training as a future Mamo
Funding Goal: $36,000 USD
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THE DURUMA COMMUNITY: Kwale County, Kenya
This project supports the preservation of the Duruma Kaya lineage on Kenya’s coast by protecting sacred forest traditions and empowering the next generation of Indigenous spiritual leaders.
We support Baba Mwatela Masai, a respected mganga (spiritual leader) and kaya elder, and his daughter Sipi Mwatela, who has been formally named his successor and is undergoing full spiritual apprenticeship.
- Sipi to complete her multi-year training as a mganga
- Preservation of healing drum, herbal, and ceremonial knowledge
- Protection of cultural dignity for future generations
Funding Goal: $29,000 USD
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GABONESE PROJECT
This project was born from the personal journey of Yorick Ossavou Mombo, who overcame addiction through traditional Gabonese medicine. His healing experience led to the creation of two complementary initiatives:
1. Y’azo Conferences – a platform dedicated to promoting and sharing traditional knowledge with a wider audience.
2. Y’azo Leyissa Academy – an educational institution focused on the teaching, transmission, preservation, and continuity of ancestral knowledge.
The Academy seeks to restore a deep connection between individuals, nature, and the civilizational ecosystem of Gabonese peoples.
Each training cycle welcomes 25 carefully selected students per academic year.
Funding Goal: $60.000 / year
Make a Donation to ROOTS
All donations are managed through Modern Spirit, ensuring that your contribution is tax-deductible and reaches the territory with full accountability.